Harry Potter and the Fortress of Shadows
by Hpfan11
Summary: Harry embarks on his 7th year at Hogwarts. Continues after HarryWriter's 5th and 6th books (can be found at www.hpfanfiction.net). Describes Harry's endeavor about fighting Dumbledore and Voldemort. The beginning of chapter 3 is up, but it is definately n


Harry Potter 7: Harry Potter and the Fortress of Shadows:  
  
Chapters: Chapter One- A Summer of Birthdays Chapter Two- The Quidditch World Cup Chapter Three- Back to School By: Alex Cohen  
  
Chapter One: A Summer of Birthdays  
  
"Harry! Come on Harry, I'm not going to start without you, but I can't wait much longer", Dudley bellowed up the stairs. Harry slowly arose out of his hibernation state of sleep and fumbled around on his desk for his glasses. After he put them on and he came to his senses, he realized what day it was. It was Dudley's birthday. No, Dudley is not Harry's brother, or stepbrother even. Dudley is Harry's cousin.  
  
Ever since Harry could remember, he had been living with the Dursleys. His parents were killed when he was younger by the second most evil wizard ever, Lord Voldemort. Harry had been a legend in the wizarding world ever since then. There wasn't a witch or wizard that didn't know his name, for he defeated the Dark Lord 16 years ago, and just last year he had stopped Dumbledore's evil campaign. It is true that Harry was no ordinary wizard. He was a descendant of Godric Gryffindor, who led up one of the houses at the school he attended, Hogwarts: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  
  
After Harry had pulled on a sweatshirt and a pair of shabby pants (his Aunt and Uncle are not as accepting of Harry as Dudley), he started his walk downstairs. When Harry arrived he saw that there were dozens of presents scattered all about the kitchen and living room. Counting them over Harry figured that there were at least fifty. Over in the corner of the living room near the fireplace he saw two baskets that looked more or less like the others, despite one major thing. There were cards attached to both baskets, one read: "From Ron", and the other: "From Hermione".  
  
Once an hour had passed, there were wrappings all over the floor. Presents were lined up on the walls and tables, and it was nearly impossible to see anything that wasn't five feet in front of your face. There were only two presents left, Ron's and Hermione's. Dudley walked over to them, and grabbed Hermione's present first. He took off the card that was taped to the basket, opened it, and read.  
  
Dear Dudley, Harry told me that you were coming, so I thought you might need some of these things. I've heard so much about you from Harry, and I can't wait to meet you in person this year. Have a great birthday Dudley! See you soon, Hermione  
  
"Harry", Dudley interrogated, "what does she mean 'I am coming'? Where am I coming to?". Dudley turned to Harry and stared at him with a sort of what- are-you-holding-back look.  
  
"Well, I was going to save this for last", Harry said with a sort of twinkle in his eyes. "But, now is a good time as any." Harry reached into one of his pockets, pulled out a letter, and handed it over to Dudley with a grand smile on his face. Dudley grasped the letter in his hand, and shot an expression over to Harry that he never though possible.  
  
Dudley let out an excited yell and then tore open the letter. "I'm going to Hogwarts!", he yelled over to his mom and dad. This obviously did not go over well with the Dursleys, because the moment after Dudley said that, they started to yell at both him and Harry. Dudley turned to Harry and whispered, "Let's go". Dudley picked up Hermione and Ron's presents, and then jolted up the stairs into Dudley's room. His room was considerably larger than Harry's, and had all of the riches that Harry had never known. Even though his parents left him a small fortune in the wizarding world, Harry had never been treated with any such kindness in the muddle world.  
  
Screams and yells could be heard from outside the door coming from Vernon and Petunia, "You will not be going to that. that school for freaks!", yelled Uncle Vernon. Petunia followed up with another, "You're better than him Dudley! He's just a dirty wizard, like his foul mother!". Dudley and Harry paid no attention to all of the screams coming from outside the door. Dudley still had a bit of a quizzical look on his face though.  
  
"Harry, I'm curious", he said. "How did you manage to get me into the school? Didn't you tell me that only students with magical ability and age 11 were sent letters? I'm sixteen, I was sure I wouldn't be on that list.", Dudley said as he turned to wait for Harry's response.  
  
"Well, I can't tell you it was easy.", Harry said, trying to build up suspense. "I had to pull a few strings at the school. Before I left for summer holidays, I asked Professor McGonagal." After Harry said this, Dudley looked like he was a bit confused. Harry knew exactly what he was thinking. "Professor McGonagal is the new headmistress of Hogwarts. Well, I asked her if you could come. She was a bit hesitant, because you are much older than the average magical ripeness, but she couldn't turn down a possible powerful ally." Dudley nodded his head in agreement.  
  
"Well Harry, what do you mean a powerful ally? I know a lot of spells and hexes and things, but I know nothing of the wizarding world. What makes you think I am going to be powerful?'  
  
"Well Dudley, there is something called magical ripeness. Basically, the older you are and the more powerful your first spell is, the more powerful the wizard can become. Because you are six years older than most of the first years, you have unimaginable potential." With this, Dudley leaked out a small smile.  
  
"But my first spell", he said. "What should it be? I mean, if I want to be powerful, I will need a powerful spell."  
  
"Well, the spell only counts with your own wand. So we won't worry about that until we go to get your wand. Until then, I've got to talk to Professor McGonagal to see what she thinks. And until we go, we have got to get you caught up on six years of magic!"  
  
"Well, not really six. More like one.", Dudley said almost apprehensively, like a child who knows they have done something they shouldn't.  
  
"How would we only need to catch you up on one year? You are entering in at the beginning of the seventh year Dudley. There are six years you've missed!"  
  
"Well Harry, remember two summers ago when that black phoenix was at our house?". To this Harry nodded. "Well, when you left for Ron's house, you left all of your items behind. I was just coming up to your room to get back that video that I lent you, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, when I noticed that you had left everything here." Harry looked a bit angry, because he thought that Dudley was snooping around a bit. "That's when I saw your books. You know, when you are an only child and your parents aren't around that much, there isn't really much to do but read. So for the past two years or so, I have just been studying all of your Standard Books of Spells years 1-5. I've got them down pretty good. Watch this", said Dudley as he took Harry's wand out of his pocket. He pointed it at an apple that was sitting on his desk. "Engorgio!", he bellowed. The apple was now five times it's normal size. After a simple reduction spell, the apple was back to it's normal size.  
  
"I'm speechless", Harry barely muttered. "Imagine what you could do once you have your own wand!" Harry was now getting quite excited about the topic. "Well, we will stop off at Ollivander's wand shop towards the end of summer when we go to get our school supplies." Harry took his wand back from Dudley and then remembered that Dudley still hadn't opened up Ron or Hermione's presents. He quickly noted this to him, and Dudley started tearing away at the baskets. After about fifteen minutes all the wrapping was on the floor and all the presents had been opened. From Hermione he received the Standard book of Spells Grade 7, and another quite useful book entitled, "Quick Hexes and Curses". From Ron he received two books about quidditch (the most popular wizarding which took place on broomsticks), assorted candies, and a handful of new items from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes (Ron's older twin brother's store full of practical jokes).  
  
"Since I don't have an owl Harry, can you write to your friends and tell them thanks for me?", Dudley asked. "So, we have what. nine, or ten weeks for me to learn the entire Standard Book of Spells for Grade 6? We better get to work". For the remainder of the day and working well into the night, Harry and Dudley worked on fine tuning his skills and learning all of the new Grade 6 spells.  
  
Halfway through the night when Harry was getting a little rested, he tried to see if Dudley had any chance of being an anamagus. Much to his dismay however, Dudley had no luck at making his fingers grow longer, or even his hair for that matter. Harry threw it off as, "Not something that all wizards could do. It took Ron, Hermione, and myself months to learn to do". After the boys were both tired mentally and physically, they decided to call it a night. Harry walked slowly back to his room in his half awake, half asleep state. Before Harry fell asleep, he took two pieces of parchment and began to write.  
  
Ron, Dudley wanted me to write to you and tell you thanks for all those great gifts. Maybe later in the summer I can spend some time at your house. Say 'hi' to your family for me! Later, Harry  
  
After he had finished composing his letter he tied it around one of Hedwigs legs. Hedwig was the snow owl that Harry got for his eleventh birthday from one of his very close adult friends, Hagrid. Hedwig seemed quite excited at the thought of finally having some flying to do. She hadn't been out all summer so far, except to go hunting for food. Before Harry let Hedwig go on her flight, he took out another piece of parchment.  
  
Hermione, Great present ideas for Dudley. Apparently, we will have a very strong wizard on our side. He has taken the liberty to study the Standard Books of Spells Grades 1-5, I'd say that he knows them better than you! Well, thanks again Hermione. Love, Harry P.S. How is it going at Ron's house for the summer?  
  
After he had tied that letter around Hedwig's leg, he stumbled into bed, and as soon as his eyelids closed he fell asleep.  
  
The next few weeks passed quicker than Harry thought, and before he knew it his birthday was upon him. Dudley and Harry had been practicing spells this whole time, and by now Dudley had gotten down more of the easier 6th year spells. The whole issue of Dudley going to Hogwarts had been settled when he used a tickling charm on his parents and wouldn't let them out until they had decided to let him go. It wasn't as fun as it sounded, because after about twenty minutes of the charm Vernon and Petunia started crying they were laughing so hard. Then after that they had started to have sharp pains in their sides, and finally they gave in. Even though Harry hadn't given much thought to it, he was curious to see how Dudley would afford all of the items he needed to buy for the school year. Harry finally settled on the thought that he would end up paying for most of Dudley's finances.  
  
Finally it came time for Harry's birthday. He awoke quite lazily that day, which was very unusual. Harry suspected that Dudley had made his parents make sure that Harry slept in that day. After getting dressed, Harry walked downstairs to find much to his surprise a table full of presents, and a small cake with seventeen candles on it. This was quite unusual for Harry, and may break records for the fact that the Dursleys were actually accepting Harry's birthday. Behind all the presents and cake Harry saw Dudley who was holding two special presents; from Ron and Hermione. "Thanks Dudley!", Harry finally yelled out as he came out of the shock.  
  
"It's the least I could do Harry. After all that you have done for me, and put up from me." Dudley started to look a little teary eyed, but then Harry gave him a smile and he immediately wiped away the look of sadness.  
  
He then looked around the room to Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. When he finally found them in a corner, he eyed them and said, "Thanks", almost as if he didn't even care that they were there. Once the cake was finished and the majority of the presents open, Harry took the present that had a card entitled, "Ron" on it. The box containing Ron's present was quite long and thin. Harry hadn't the slightest idea of what Ron could have gotten him. He detached the note from the rest of the box and began to read.  
  
Harry, You know, it's only once in a while that someone turns 17. I can't believe it; we will be starting our final term at Hogwarts this year. I was in Diagon Alley and this present just struck my eye. I had to get it for you! Don't worry about the expenses, we will be doing fine. Have a great birthday Harry! From, Ron  
  
Harry still hadn't the slightest idea what was in the box, but the indication that cost was an issue made Harry a little uneasy. He cautiously took off the wrapping paper, and when the present was finally in sight Harry's mouth dropped to the floor. He couldn't believe what Ron had got him. Standing in front of Harry was a racing brook. It looked unbelievably fast, even more so than his top of the line Firebolt. Harry found a tag near the back of the broom that had purple letters in the shape of lighting bolts on it. Under closer analysis Harry could make out the name of his new broom. "Lightningbolt 2005", Harry read aloud to himself. The broom appeared to be a super modified version of his Firebolt, and Harry could hardly wait to try it out. After about thirty minutes of staring in awe, Harry placed down the broom and picked up Hermione's present. He took the card off, which read.  
  
Dear Harry, I hope that you have a great birthday. Some of these presents should prove useful to us in this, our final year at Hogwarts. By the way, if you aren't doing anything the second to last week of summer I would like to take you to the Quidditch World Cup. This year it's going to be in Bulgaria. Viktor mailed me the other day with tickets and asked me to take a friend with me, and I could think of no one better than you Harry! We can talk further later. Be at your fireplace today at 2:00 PM, and make sure that the muggles aren't around. Love, Hermione  
  
Harry was astounded at the thought of this. First he got a new Lightningbolt 2005, and now he may be going to the Quidditch World Cup with Hermione. Harry thought that the only thing that could possibly be any better than this was his first date with Cho. Harry opened up Hermione's present to find a couple of books (A Comprehensive Guide to Spellmaking and Practicing with the Pros: A Look into the Chudley Cannons), and to Harry's utter amazement there was also a letter from Sirius.  
  
Even though it was his birthday Harry still got stuck doing the dishes and cleaning up the kitchen. After that, Dudley and Harry just read through their books until it finally came time to meet with Hermione. By then, Harry had learned quite a bit more about spellmaking, and was successful in replicating many intermediate lever spells. Before Harry went into the living room with Hermione, he had Dudley make sure that they were nowhere around, and instructed him to stupefy them if they came downstairs.  
  
Sitting down in the armchair that faced the fire, Harry began to wait patiently. Promptly at 2:00, he heard a loud popping noise, and then there was Hermione's head floating around in the middle of the fire. Normally Harry would have gasped in horror, but he had seen this done before a few years ago while he was at the Weasley's house. "Hey Hermione", he said quite casually.  
  
"How's it going Harry? How was your birthday?", she responded.  
  
"It was great, thanks for all the presents. I'm most excited about the Quidditch Cup, it's going to be awesome." Harry said with a gleam in his eyes.  
  
"There's no one I'd rather go with than you Harry.", she responded to his statement. "It's going to be great, I just need to mail Ron and tell him that you will be with me if he needs to reach you." She was stopped abruptly by Harry's absurd look on his face.  
  
"What do you mean, 'mail Ron'? Aren't you at his house for this summer?" As far as Harry knew, Ron and Hermione were going out, and she was staying at his house this summer.  
  
Hermione paused for a bit and then replied, "I knew this was going to come up. You see, I was staying with Ron in the beginning of the summer, and everything was going great. But then I just sort of lost interest in him, and I guess him with me. When we broke up it was kind of mutual, we just didn't feel close anymore." Hermione was beginning to sound a bit sentimental, and Harry didn't exactly know how to handle these situations.  
  
"I guess it's for the best." Hermione looked up at him, her eyes glistening. "Maybe what you're really looking for is just around the corner." Hermione started to blush a little, but Harry interrupted her saying, "But enough with that. So tell me more about this Quidditch Cup." This seemed to raise her spirits a little more.  
  
"Well Harry", she said enthusiastically. "This year, the Cup's going to be held in Bulgaria. Since you don't get the wizarding paper, I'll fill you in a little bit. Krum is still on the Bulgaria team, and they are playing the team from Romania. I'm not sure if this is alright with you, but we would be going alone Harry. Since both of our parents are muggles, I don't think they would want to accompany us. The Cup takes place in one week Harry, and then after that you can go back home."  
  
"Sounds great", Harry chimed in. "Just have a couple questions for you. How am I going to get to you, and how are we going to get to the Cup?"  
  
"Well of course you are coming to my house before hand. Just use some floo powder. If you haven't noticed yet, I've left some in a small bag for you inside your basket from me. And then, once we are here we will use a portkey to get to the Cup. Same way we got there last time, only we won't have to get up nearly as early. The portkey is only two blocks away from my house." Hermione looked quite pleased with herself.  
  
"OK, sounds good. When should I come over to your house?"  
  
"If it starts in a week, then you could probably come over in like five or six days." Hermione paused for a moment, then began to speak again. "That is. unless you want to spend some time together before the Cup, then you can come over tommarow or the next day."  
  
Almost immediately after she had spoken the words, her cheeks began to redden, and she quickly turned her head so that Harry couldn't see her eyes. "I'd love to Hermione". She turned her face back towards him, and Harry felt something new inside him. It was an emotion that he had only felt when he was with Cho. "I'll leave for your house tommarow. I should be there around noon. OK Hermione?"  
  
She didn't say anything in response to his question, so Harry assumed that it was alright. After a few moments of silence, Hermione spoke up. "Since my house isn't a Wizard's house, it doesn't have a name. So when you are using the floo powder, just say 'Hermione Granger'. I've had to add it to the floo network for tommarow just for this." Harry nodded in agreement. "See you later Harry", she mumbled to him.  
  
"Yeah, see you tomarrow.", but before Harry could finish his sentence, the fireplace made a loud popping noise, and Hermione's head disappeared out of the flames.  
  
Chapter Two: The Quidditch World Cup  
  
Nothing that happened mattered to Harry anymore. All he cared about was the fact that he was going to the World Cup! The rest of the day, Harry kept his face buried in a book. Dudley was also interested in Harry's old Standard Book of Spells Grade 6 book. After watching Monty Python and the Holy Grail with Dudley, Harry retreated to his room with all of his presents. By the time Harry went to sleep, he had been able to successfully make a spell that conjured up an apple (the difficulty was not conjuring the apple, but managing to write the code for the spell). It didn't do much, but it was basic for laying the grounds to higher spellmaking (or so the book said). Before Harry turned off his light, he looked over at Hedwig's cage, and noticed that she was missing. Harry shrugged it off with the excuse that she was probably out hunting.  
  
Harry awoke quite suddenly to the sound of his alarm clock blaring. He slammed his hand down on it to turn it off, and after ten more minutes of sleep he finally forced himself out of his bed. He peered down at his clock, and it read, "11:47 AM". Harry was shocked. "What's wrong with my clock?", he thought. After frantically scrambling to pack up his trunk, he made sure he had everything he needed. When he was going over his items, he saw his new Thunderbolt lying on the floor beside his cauldron and other items. Harry then remembered that Hermione had said something about side Quidditch games, so he quickly put his Thunderbolt in his trunk and ran downstairs.  
  
When Harry arrived at the living room, he saw Dudley standing there. "Just came to see you off Harry. You know, make sure everything goes all right."  
  
"Thanks Dudley. I'll be back in a week, keep studying until then". With this, Harry took a handful of floo powder out of his pocket, through it into the fire, walked in, and shouted, "Hermione Granger". Everything around Harry started to spin as he was sucked into the fireplace, and before he knew it, Harry could hardly see Dudley waving to him anymore. After passing hundreds of other fireplaces, Harry finally arrived at his destination. He was thrown out of the fireplace at such high speeds that he didn't have time to react, and he landed right on his face.  
  
"Hey there Harry." Harry recognized the voice as his good friend Hermione. After he got up and cleaned his glasses off he could more clearly see Hermione. She didn't look anything like she did at Hogwarts. Instead of robes and pants, she was wearing jean shorts, and a t-shirt.  
  
"Hermione", Harry said trying to stifle down a cough from all of the soot. "It's great to see you". After they had given each other a quick hug, Hermione showed Harry to his room. Harry's room was located on the top floor of her two-story house. There were three doors on the top floor, one at the far end of the hall, and one on either side of the hall. After she had opened the door to the room and set Harry's things on his bed, she led him back downstairs.  
  
"So" she said, finally acting girlish. "What do you want to do Harry? My parents are both working till later today, they won't be home for a few hours."  
  
Quickly realizing where this conversation was going, Harry led it in a different direction. "Why don't I show you what I can do with spellmaking? Where's your cauldron?"  
  
Hermione looked a little bummed at the new subject at hand, but turned around and walked upstairs. A minute later she came back down with her cauldron. "Here you go", she said with a smile. After Harry had thoroughly impressed her with his ability to conjure an apple, Harry put the cauldron away.  
  
"So tell me Hermione", Harry said, delving into a deeper subject. "Why did you really not want to stay at Ron's for the summer?" Hermione started to look a bit apprehensive at the thought of really sharing her feelings. "Just last year you two were inseparable."  
  
"Well", she said, trying to buy time. "I really did lose interest in him. He just wasn't as appealing to me as he was before."  
  
"So you were telling the truth?"  
  
"Not entirely", Hermione said with a sigh. "I also think I really like someone else. I just couldn't tell Ron."  
  
"So who is this mystery guy? I mean, how many other wizards do you know that don't go to Hogwarts? Wait, he goes to a different school?", Harry said trying to guess Hermione's secret.  
  
"Not telling", she said stubbornly.  
  
"Come on! At least tell me if he is still in school or not." To this Hermione gave a nod. "I guess I'll have to meet this great guy that's won your affection some day." Hermione nodded again, and Harry quickly turned the subject elsewhere. "So, do we have good seats?".  
  
"They're terrific!", Hermione gasped excitedly searching for the tickets. Once she finally managed to locate them, Harry looked at them and saw that they were once again in the top box. "And we get to go talk to Krum and the other players after the game!". It was like magic. After Harry heard these words he was completely filled with joy.  
  
"No way! You're the best Hermione", Harry said as he gave her a hug. He was too busy thinking about meeting Krum and the others again that he forgot to let go.  
  
"Uhh, Harry", Hermione barely managed to say. Harry finally noticed, and quickly took his arms off her. She was breathing heavily for a while, trying to regain her breath. After doing so she said, "It's no problem. Just think of it as repayment for all those times you've saved me from Voldemort and Dumbledore."  
  
"Repay me? Oh, thanks." That's when Harry remembered about Ron buying Harry his new Thunderbolt. "By the way, do you know how Ron managed to afford me a new Thunderbolt? They must be worth hundreds of galleons!"  
  
Hermione then realized that Harry was talking about Ron's birthday present to him. "Oh, he hasn't told you?", Hermione asked quite matter-of-factly.  
  
"Told me what?"  
  
"About his dad. He got a promotion at the ministry! He's now the head of his department, Muggle cooperation." Harry just sat there in awe. Ron had finally come into some money of his own. Now there was nothing that Draco could make fun of him for. Harry thought to himself that Ron probably had a Thunderbolt as well. Their quidditch team was going to need it. Not only had they lost some of the best chasers Hogwarts had ever seen, but many of the older students had turned out to be Death Eaters.  
  
"Well, I'll have to talk to him about that later", Harry said. The two continued to talk until Hermione's parents came home. After some quite uncomfortable discussion, Harry managed to learn that Hermione's parents' names are 'Cindy' and 'Jeff'. The next week went by quite quickly considering that Harry and Hermione had nothing to do all day but practice spells, watch television, and talk to each other.  
  
The night before they were to leave for the Quidditch World Cup, Hermione came into Harry's room carrying two large sacks. She tossed them onto his bed and said, "Our tents."  
  
"Great. Are these magical tents?", Harry asked as he grabbed one of the bags and looked inside. On any normal tent, Harry would have seen nothing but the fabric making up the tent, but this was a special tent. When Harry took a look inside he saw a full mini house. It was complete with a queen size bed, kitchen, and small family room. "Great", Harry said as he took his head out of the bag. "Where'd you manage to get these? I mean, because your parents are muggles and all."  
  
Hermione turned around and looked at Harry. "Oh", she said. "Well, I managed to find a couple of these on sale when I went to go and buy your and Dudley's presents." After she spoke she turned to leave the room, and right as she was about to exit, Harry yelled after her.  
  
"Hey, Hermione. I'm curious, because your parents are muggles, where do you get all of your money? Where do you get your wizard money, I mean?". Harry hadn't really given much thought to this before, but was suddenly curious because he wanted to know how Dudley was going to get his.  
  
"I thought you knew.", Hermione said quite matter-of-factly. "There is an exchange rate common amongst the magic world. One galleon is the equivalent to five pounds (about $7.30 or 8.00 euro). Because my parents are both dentists, I don't have to really worry about money. That's why I don't have a vault at Gringotts if you were wondering." Gringotts is the wizarding bank that is run completely by goblins.  
  
"Thanks Hermione. I just wasn't sure if I was going to have to pay for Dudley's things or not. I guess his parents can pay though." Hermione made her start out of the room, but before she could get out Harry stopped her again. "So when do I get to find out?".  
  
"What?", Hermione asked. "Find out about what?".  
  
"You know", Harry said. After a short pause he followed up with, "The guy you like. When will I find out who it is?"  
  
She paused for a minute, and then turned to Harry. "You'll know soon enough.", she said with a small smile on her face. After she walked out of the room, Harry turned off his light and went to sleep.  
  
Harry was woken up by the violent shaking of Hermione. "Harry, get up! Come on. We have to leave in half an hour! Finally", she said as she saw his eyes open. "I thought you were never going to wake up." A smile shot across Hermione's face. "Well, you better start getting ready."  
  
After Hermione left the room Harry got up and started to change and pack his things. About twenty minutes later Harry had finished packing his things, and he started to double-check everything. Once he was content that he had everything packed, he picked up his trunk and started to walk downstairs. The downstairs was completely empty besides Harry and the Granger's cat, Fluffy. Harry figured that both of Hermione's parents were already at work because it was 9:25. Shortly after Harry arrived downstairs, Hermione came down as well. She was also carrying a trunk. "Good morning sunshine", Harry said. Hermione didn't say anything for a while, she just smiled.  
  
"We'd better get going soon. The portkey leaves at 9:45." After she said this she opened the front door for Harry to exit through. She then taped a note on the door for her parents, and closed the door securely. After ten minutes of walking Harry and Hermione arrived at the portkey location. It was a deserted bus stop in an empty part of the neighborhood.  
  
There were only two other families there with them. Harry couldn't recognize who the people were, but they looked like they had a couple of children entering Hogwarts this year. After a bit of talk with the first family, Harry had found out their names: the father's name was Gavin Brooks, the mother's was Sherry, and their two children were Ryan and Gandor. "What object is the portkey?". Hermione pointed to an empty soda can that was lying down by an old stone bench.  
  
She then looked at her watch and called over the other families. "It's about time", she said. "Now everyone touch a part of the can. She picked up the can with one hand and the other pulled gently on Harry's clothes. Harry moved in closer and touched a part of the can. After everyone had done that they waited for about forty-five seconds before it started. Harry felt a strong tug behind his navel, as if someone were pulling him backwards with a hook. Everything around him went black, and his world was spinning so fast that he had to close his eyes or he thought he would get sick.  
  
When Harry opened his eyes he looked around and saw that he was in a small clearing. The adults of the families were the only ones still standing. Everyone else was on the floor, including Hermione. Once she had gotten up, Hermione took out her wand, pointed it at herself, and yelled, "Abstergeo!". She was instantly cleaned off of all the dust and dirt that was one clinging to her clothes. After Harry got to his feet, Hermione started to walk and Harry followed.  
  
"Do we have to go to check in, so we can get our tent area?", Harry asked.  
  
"No, I called that muggle in advance. I already know where we are going to stay." She took out a map and handed it to Harry. It looked like the entire grounds of the park. There must have been thousands of acres. There were areas indicated for tents according to ticket cost. The more expensive the ticket, the closer to the stadium the tent spot was. After looking at the map for some time, Harry's eyes stumbled upon a large oval shape on the map that was entitled, "Quidditch Field".  
  
Nearly forty-five minutes had gone by when they finally reached some sort of civilization. The tents they came across at first were hanging dark purple streamers and banners. They had enchanted them to read things like, "Go Bulgaria!", and "Krum's the man!". Harry also saw many portraits of Viktor Krum himself hanging to the tents. In his fourth year at Hogwarts Harry had to match up against Krum in the Triwizard Tournament. Harry had even beaten Krum, and didn't see exactly why so many people idolized him. As Harry passed through the crowd of purple tents, he saw some of his fellow classmates there.  
  
"Hey Harry!", yelled one of his classmates. Harry and Hermione slowly made their way over to Seamus Finnigan.  
  
"Seamus, how's it going?", Harry asked.  
  
"Pretty good Harry. I've been practicing my quidditch skills all summer long. Hopefully I'll make the team this year.", he said with a chuckle.  
  
"I don't doubt that you will. I've already saved you and Dean spots. Especially now since our chasers and beaters are gone. We've pretty much got to work from the ground up again." After about ten minutes of small talk, Harry and Hermione set off again on their journey to find their campsite.  
  
Once they had walked for another fifteen minutes, the purple banners and flags began to start to dwindle down. Soon after that, there were hardly any at all. Now, the only banners that were up were made up of red, white, and blue. "I thought Romania's colors were red and black", Harry said to Hermione.  
  
"Me too. That's odd. Let's ask someone what's up." Hermione began to walk up to one of the tents that were colored in red, white, and blue. There, a wizard was trying to erect his tent without magic. He hadn't had much luck so far, and things didn't get any better when Hermione tapped him on the back. "Erm. Excuse me sir.", she mumbled. "What team are you supporting?".  
  
The wizard turned around with a sort of disturbed look on his face. "Is that a joke little lady?".  
  
"No sir, it's not. It's just that my friend here and I thought that Romania's colors were red and black." Hermione waited silently for a reply.  
  
"Well of course they are!", he said back.  
  
"Well then, why are you all sporting red, white, and blue?". Harry could tell that she was beginning to get a bit peeved with the man's snappy answers.  
  
"Because", he said very slowly as if she was a three year-old. "the red, white, and blue are my team's colors!", he finished at a normal pace of voice.  
  
"What are you talking about?! How can red, white, blue be your colors when you said that they were red and black?!" Hermione was now furious. She couldn't stand this mans insolence anymore.  
  
"I'm not from Romania! They got disqualified for having their team use hexes on Bulgaria's brooms. We are replacing those dirty cheaters.", said the man with a quite of snobby tone.  
  
"Well what country is your team from?". Hermione began to have a bit more patience now that the man had begun to make sense.  
  
"The United States of America of course, land of the free." After he said this, the man turned around and began to work on his tent again.  
  
Harry had never given much thought to wizards in America. He always just assumed that the only schools were in Europe. But, "Then again" he thought to himself, "I didn't know there were other schools besides Hogwarts before three years ago." Harry and Hermione continued to walk towards their campsite, talking about possible schools in the U.S.A.  
  
"I heard once that there is a place called Helcate: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I don't know if it's true or not, I only have read about it once." Hermione and Harry finally arrived at their campsite. It was at most, one thousand yards from the Quidditch Stadium. The stadium looked bigger this year than before. There were three hoops that stood atop a one hundred and fifty foot pole at each end of the stadium. There were also humongous stands going all the way around the stadium. There were probably enough seats to fit 500,000 people.  
  
"Hey Harry", a voice called from behind him. Harry turned around to see that the voice belonged to Hermione. "Let's set up these tents." Before long, Harry and Hermione had set up two perfect tents. Harry picked up his trunk and dragged it inside his own tent. He unpacked his clothes into the drawers, took out his broom, and put it on the table. After a few minutes Hermione entered his tent. "Cozy", she said.  
  
"Yeah, well I do what I can.", Harry said snappily back. He took his broom off the table and put it on his bed. "So whom do I talk to about these side games? I really want to play in one. It's been so long since I've played quidditch."  
  
"I'm not exactly sure. I read about it in a brochure for the World Cup. Maybe Krum will know. Let's go talk to him tonight", she said excitedly. "I'm going to go start lunch. Meet me in my tent in fifteen or twenty minutes." Once Hermione was out of Harry's tent, he plopped down on his bed and closed his eyes. After what felt like an extremely short nap, Harry got up out of his bed and strolled over to the sink. His eyes were too groggy to see anything well. He turned on the faucet and started to splash water over his eyes. Once they felt like they were awake enough to work properly, Harry made his way out of the cabin.  
  
When he got out of the cabin he didn't believe his eyes. He thought somebody was playing a trick on him. But sure enough, it was real. The entire grounds were dark, and it must have been 7:00 or 8:00 PM. Harry glanced at his watch and it was indeed 7:30. Harry quickly ran into Hermione's tent to find her reading on her bed. "Why didn't you wake me up?", Harry said angrily.  
  
"Don't get mad at me. I did you a favor Harry, I let you sleep. It's not like we missed anything, we can't go talk to Viktor until later when he is done with practice. "I saved you some lunch, it's in the refrigerator over there." Hermione pointed to a corner of the tent. Harry walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out a sandwich. In between bites Harry managed to form words. "So. where are we going to find Krum?"  
  
"Viktor told me that we could find him in the Bulgaria Team tent. I've circled it on the map here." She handed Harry the map, which he quickly put down on the table so he could take another bite of his sandwich. After finishing three sandwiches, Harry put his plate in the sink and then picked up the map. From what he could tell, the Bulgaria Team tent was on the other side of the Quidditch Stadium.  
  
"Are you sure you want to go?", Harry asked Hermione. "It's not going to be hard for you to see him again? He did propose to you after all." Harry still couldn't believe that Hermione turned down Krum's proposal.  
  
"Yeah, I think I'll be fine. We've been writing each other recently, and I think I've gotten over it." Hermione said while she was twisting some hair in-between her fingers. The next few minutes were filled with complete silence; Hermione was staring blankly across the room, and Harry was looking at the map.  
  
"Well, we should probably get off if we want to be back by a decent hour.", Harry finally said as he handed Hermione the map. She took it and placed it inside one of her robe pockets. Harry walked over to the door and held it open for Hermione so that she could leave. "Ladies first", Harry said.  
  
"Well thank you.", Hermione said as her cheeks began to blush a bit. Even though she was a girl, she never really liked to be treated like one. She was a prefect the past two years, and a shoe-in for Head Girl this year. After Hermione and Harry were both out of the tent, Hermione did a quick charm to lock the door, and they were off. As opposed to the difficulty that it was to get by the other tents, these tents seemed fairly spread out. Harry looked around and saw a variety of different tents. Some were flying purple banners, and others were red, white, and blue. Harry noticed that many people had the words, "James", written across their banners. Harry came to the conclusion that he was an American player. After they made it past the Quidditch stadium, the two came to a clearing.  
  
There was forest all around, forming a practical border, and right in the middle of the clearing was a large tent. This tent wasn't like any of the others out amongst the rest. This tent was completely purple, and to Harry's amazement, seven stories high. As they neared the tent, Hermione pointed out the magical barrier around it, so that crazed fans don't go hurting the players. Once they had arrived at the tent, Harry realized that there was no door. After several minutes of searching, the only thing Harry and Hermione could find was a small keypad attached to a pole that was sticking out of the ground.  
  
Hermione seemed to know what she was doing, because she took out her wand and tapped the keypad three times. Immediately, a small transparent gas started emitting from a whole on the keypad. Once it had formed a cloud above the pad, it started to take shape. Floating in mid-air in front of Harry was an exact replica of Viktor Krum's face. "Hermione!", the face yelled with excitement. Then it turned to Harry, "Good to see you too Harry". Apparently Krum had learned to say Hermione correctly. Back in fourth year when she and Krum were going out, he had much trouble pronouncing it.  
  
"Hi Viktor", Hermione said to him. Harry could see that she was trying to avoid direct eye contact with him. "Harry and I just came by because we have a few questions that maybe you can answer. But it seems like", Hermione pause and looked around the tent again. "It seems like this is an impenetrable fortress."  
  
"Oh, I can fix that. Come on in", Krum said. The face vanished, and the pole started to sink in the ground. Once the pole and keypad were completely underground, Harry and Hermione waited for something to happen. Just when they had given up hope, they heard a sound that came from in front of the tent. A small black dot appeared inside the magical barrier. It slowly started to get larger and larger until it was big enough for Harry and Hermione to fit through. Hermione was a little passive, but when she looked to Harry he just gave her a small nod and started to walk towards it. The closer he got, the louder the sound it made. It was like a small popping and whistling sound, which seemed to be coming from inside the whole. When Harry was merely a foot away from the dark spot he closed his eyes, and took a giant step forward. He immediately felt himself being pulled upwards.  
  
When he opened his eyes he saw that he was standing in the middle of a room, with Krum. He looked around quite frantically to make sure he was seeing straight, but after Hermione appeared right next to him, he knew they had gone to the right place. "Hey Viktor", Harry and Hermione said almost simultaneously.  
  
Krum just gave a smile, and approached Hermione apprehensively. He finally decided to hug her. "It's good to see you Hermione. Really good." As Krum let go of Hermione he gave her a peck on the cheek. "And you too Harry. I never really did get to say congratulations on the Triwizard Cup. Good job, you deserved it."  
  
Harry felt slightly embarrassed. He was being complimented by one of the best quidditch players ever. "Thanks Viktor. I really think you deserved it, if you hadn't been put under the Imperius Curse then you would have won. But what's it matter anymore?"  
  
"So you said you had some questions?", Krum said almost as if he was trying to get them to talk.  
  
Hermione noticed his tone of voice and quickly chimed in, "Oh yes! Well, Harry and I heard that there were going to be some side games."  
  
"Yes, there will be.", Viktor said matter-of-factly.  
  
"Where do I sign up? Is there anyway I can play, because I brought my broom along just for that." Harry was started to get excited about the thought of playing quidditch again.  
  
"Well, I think you might be more interested in something else Harry.", Krum said. He reached down to the table that he was standing next to and picked up a flier. He gave it to Harry to read, and as soon as Harry set his eyes upon it he was dumb-founded.  
  
To all Bulgaria team players, We regret to inform you that our seeker, James Schank, has come down with a severe illness. He will not be able to play in the game tomorrow. If any of you know someone that is available to play for us, please contact the American Team Coach A.S.A.P. Thank You.  
  
"There's. just no way.", Harry said still in disbelief. "I couldn't play on a national quidditch team. Especially with the Americans, I don't even know any of them!". Harry would have given anything to play in the main game the following day, but didn't want to sound over-excited to Krum.  
  
"Well, lucky for you, I know their coach. If you wanted to, I could tell him that I've filled the spot." Krum's eyes lightened up as he saw Harry brake the biggest smile.  
  
"Really?! You would do that for me?", Harry said as he was overwhelmed with joy.  
  
"Of course. Just to prove to everyone that I can beat the great Harry Potter.", he said in a joking tone.  
  
"Are you sure you're up for it?", Hermione asked. She had never been too keen for Harry to break the rules, or risk his life. "These are professional quidditch players Harry! And they aren't going to go easy on you either."  
  
"I know Hermione. So where do I sign up?", Harry said directed at Krum.  
  
"Well, all I've got to do is take you down to the American team tent. I'm sure they will be glad to have you play with them."  
  
"Great! Let's get going", Harry said anxiously. Right after he said that, Krum took out his wand and tapped on the wall where Harry and Hermione had come through. It started to develop the black hole again, and as soon as it was fully-grown, Harry, Hermione, and Krum all went through. Once they were out of the tent, Krum took a quick look around and then started in the direction of the stadium. Harry and Hermione followed him automatically, and no one said a word until Krum broke the silence.  
  
"They are camping out in the stadium, because the had to come on such short notice. I assume they have a tent like ours though." As they neared the stadium, Krum once again took out his wand and said, "Point me". The wand spun around, and finally landed pointing in a direction. "The camp is set up in the North end of the stadium. Keep close now, we don't want to get lost." After minutes of walking through the labyrinth-like halls of the stadium, they finally arrived in the North. On the field, there was a tent much like that of Krum's, only it wasn't seven stories tall, it was four.  
  
Krum approached the tent and tapped on their keypad that was sticking out of the ground. Just like before, a mist floated out of a whole in the keypad, and took shape as an older looking wizard. "Ah, Krum! What are you doing here?", the hallucination asked.  
  
"Well Jeffrey, I think I've found you a seeker", Krum said as he through Harry in front of the hallucination. The man eyed Harry for a few minutes, and then said, "Come on in, I'm sure the team would like to meet you." Immediately after he said that, the keypad sank into the ground, and a black hole started to open up again.  
  
Harry started to walk into the black hole, but then turned around abruptly. "Wait. Hermione, are you going to be alright getting back to our tent by yourself?"  
  
"I should be OK, it's not too far from here", said Hermione trying to sound brave.  
  
"You don't have to go alone, I will walk you there Hermione.", Krum said.  
  
"Alright then. I'll see you later Hermione", Harry said as he stepped through the black hole. His last sights were Krum putting his hand on Hermione's shoulder. Harry was teleported to another room like before, except this time he wasn't in a bedroom. When Harry started to look around, he noticed that he was in a sort of meeting room, or common room.  
  
There were seven men sitting all around, and when one of them caught a glimpse of Harry, he smiled and yelled, "Everybody. I would like you to meet our new seeker. Mr. Harry Potter." Harry could hear some of the men whispering to each other, apparently his legend was international. The man who introduced Harry walked up to him and put out his hand. "Nice to meet you, I'm Jeffrey Gordon."  
  
Harry shook his hand and said, "Hey." That was all he could mumble at the moment, still in shock.  
  
"Well let me introduce you to all the guys", Jeffrey said. He led Harry over to one of the men that was sitting in a desk, writing over a piece of paper. "Now this, is Frank Abagnal." Frank was a man who looked about the age 35. He was fairly old for a quidditch player, and Harry immediately assumed he was a beater. His nose was quite deformed (obviously from many breaks playing quidditch), and his slick blonde hair gave him a sort of false youth.  
  
Frank turned around in his chair and stuck out his hand. "Nice to meet you Harry." Harry accepted his handshake and gave him a friendly nod.  
  
After Harry and Frank were introduced, Jeffrey grabbed Harry's shoulder and led him over to two men who were standing up and sharing a drink. "These two fellas, are a couple of our star chasers. I'd like you to meet Jim Holmes, and John Barstow. Both of the men looked quite young for quidditch. They seemed to be about 19 or 20, but Harry was sure that they were older. Unlike Frank, these two men didn't have deformed faces. Perhaps they hadn't been playing long, or perhaps they had great beaters to protect them. It was all the same to Harry though; he wasn't joining the team, just playing a game with them. Jim and John just waved at Harry, and he back at them.  
  
Once again, Harry felt himself being pushed in another direction by Jeffrey. He was led over to the middle of the room, where the remaining three men were all laying down on what looked like comfy couches. "Gentlemen.", Jeffrey said. None of the three moved, apparently they were all sleeping. Jeffrey cleared his throat and gave it another try. "GENTLEMEN!", he bellowed at the top of his lungs. Suddenly, all three of the men started looking around frantically as if there was an earthquake going on. "I'd like to introduce seeker for tomorrow's game. Harry, that fellow over there is Ted". When Ted heard his name, he turned to Harry and gave a small smile and wave. "That one there is Kurt". Once again, when Kurt heard his name he turned and gave a wave to Harry. "And this is our all star keeper, Stephen."  
  
"Hey guys", Harry said to them. Stephen stood up and gave Harry a firm handshake. He could already tell who his favorite player was. Stephen looked a bit different from the other men. "You. you're not American, are you?", Harry asked.  
  
"No, I'm not. I'm actually English. Moved to America a few years ago. How'd you know?", he asked, sounding intrigued.  
  
"I'm not sure, I just do.", Harry said. "So what's the schedule for tomorrow?", he asked excitedly. "Where should I meet you guys?"  
  
"The game starts at 2:00 PM sharp.", Jeffrey said. "Be there at noon so we can practice a bit before all the crowd gets there. You can go back to your tent if you want, or if not then we have some extra room here."  
  
"I think I'll be OK going back to my tent thanks.", Harry said reluctantly. He turned to walk out of the tent, and make his way back to Hermione when he heard Jeffrey yell to him.  
  
"Oh, by the way Harry. We've got an extra Firebolt lying around if you need to use a broom." Jeffrey sounded a bit reluctant while giving him the information, as if he didn't want Harry to use one of their brooms.  
  
"I think I'll be alright with my Thunderbolt. But thanks anyways." Jeffrey stood there awestruck. He wasn't exactly sure if he had heard Harry correctly, but before he had time to stop him again, Harry had gone through the black hole, and was back on the outside of the tent. Once Harry was out of the tent, he remembered Hermione, and how she had been walked back by Krum. Harry began to worry that Krum was the person she loved, and that's how he got her the tickets. A bit confused, Harry began the short walk back to their campsite. He passed many of the once festive tents, only to see flickering lights, and burnt out fires. Everyone had gone to sleep, or at least that's what it seemed like.  
  
When Harry finally reached his tent, he decided to check on Hermione just to be sure that she had gotten back all right. He opened the door slowly, just to make sure that he didn't wake her up. When the door was ajar however, he heard sounds coming from inside, so he decided that he could just barge in. What Harry saw made him both furious and confused. Lying on the couch, were Hermione and Krum. They were both kissing quite passionately, and apparently they were not expecting Harry to come back this early, or even at all for that matter. "Get off her!", Harry yelled.  
  
Krum immediately turned a ghostly white, and he jumped off the couch and backed up against the wall. "Harry, Harry.this isn't what it looks like. We were just."  
  
Krum was interrupted by Harry's yells. "It was all just a trick, wasn't it? You were just trying to lose me so that you could be with the Bulgarian freak, weren't you Hermione?!".  
  
"Harry, it's not like that.", Hermione said with teary eyes. "It just happened, it wasn't planned."  
  
Hermione was cut off by Harry's yell. He took out his wand and aimed it directly at Krum. "Conglobo!", Harry yelled. A small yellow light erupted out of the end of Harry's wand and made it's way over to Krum. When it hit him, he began to spasm and shake erratically. He dropped to the floor, and began to curl into a ball, unable to move. Harry put his wand back into his pocket and said to the now sobbing Hermione, "You can help your boyfriend now." With those words, he stormed out of the tent, and into his own.  
  
Harry fumed into his own room, mad at the world. He threw himself down onto his bed, and just lay there thinking. "What right does she have to go do that? After all we'd done together, she goes and does that with Krum! Krum of all people! The one who she turned down. But then again, it's not like I'm going out with her. Am I? Just because we go to the Quidditch Cup together doesn't mean I'm going out with her, does it? Would it really be that bad anyways? I can't really do anything now that I've gotten her this mad. I've just got to talk to her tomorrow. Right." Harry fell asleep with so many emotions running around inside of him. He was furious with Krum for kissing Hermione, but maybe she had wanted him to.  
  
Things didn't seem to get better the next day. Harry woke up with the sunlight streaming across his face. For a moment, he had completely forgotten about what happened. When he did remember however, he just got mad again. The clock next to his bed read "11:15". Harry was due at the quidditch field in forty-five minutes. After eating a quick salami sandwich, Harry changed into his finest robes, picked up his Thunderbolt, and head out of the door. Being outside lifted his spirits a bit. Harry remembered that he would be playing the biggest quidditch game of his life, and he had butterflies in his stomach. He walked over to Hermione's tent, in an attempt to make amends.  
  
Harry knocked on the door once and yelled, "Hermione. Can I have a talk with you?". He stood around for a few minutes waiting for Hermione, thinking that she was just putting her clothes on or something. Five minutes passed, and Harry began to wonder if she was even in there. He tried the handle, but it was locked. Harry took out his wand. "Alohomora!", he said. He tried the handle again, and this time the door swung open. Harry stepped inside only to see that the entire place was covered in clothes. Hermione had obviously been trying to see what outfit she should wear. Despite all of the clothes, there was no sign of Hermione.  
  
Harry left the tent, hopped on his broom, and began to fly towards the stadium. This was Harry's first time flying on the Thunderbolt, and he could immediately tell the difference. Not only did his new broom handle better, but it was twice as fast, and Harry got to the stadium in no time at all. Down on the floor of the stadium, were seven wizards. Harry recognized them as the American quidditch team. As he approached, he could see that one of them was holding a robe of some sort. When Harry touched down, he was greeted quite warmly by all of them.  
  
"Nice to see you Harry." "Glad you showed up." "Let's get this started!", were just some of the welcomes Harry heard. Jeffrey walked up to Harry with a robe clenched tightly in his hands, and gave it to Harry. "Put this on", Jeffrey said. "We've got to start practicing soon". Harry looked down at the robes that were in his hands, and saw that they were made up of super slick silk. Harry guessed that it was for speed purposes. He took the robes, and ran over to behind some stands.  
  
Harry returned a few minutes later, looking like a full-blown American! The red, white, and blue robes made him fit right in, and as he approached the team, they gave out some applause. "We've only got a good hour to practice before the fans start to come in, so let's get started", said Jeffrey. He walked over to a small box, and opened it up. There were four balls in the box. Two bludgers that the beaters hit around at the opposition's seeker, one quaffle that the chasers tried to get through the goal, and one tiny golden snitch that Harry had to catch.  
  
Jeffrey let out the bludgers first, then the quaffle, and before he was about to let out the snitch, he asked, "So how will this practice work?".  
  
"Well", said Jeffrey. "Jim, John, and Ted are going to try and score against Stephen. Kurt and Frank will practice hitting bludgers at each other, and you will just practice catching the snitch. It's like a non-stop practice." After Harry signaled that he understood by nodding, Jeffrey let the snitch go. The tiny golden ball sprung wings that beat so fast that they looked like a blur. Within second, the snitch was out of sight, and the other six team members were off the ground. Harry left the ground shortly after the rest of them, keeping an eye out for the snitch.  
  
The significance in Harry's Thunderbolt to his old Firebolt was amazing. Harry noticed that all the chasers had Thunderbolts as well. The two beaters and keepers however, had Firebolts. Harry felt a bit sorry for them, but then realized that they didn't need to go as fast as the rest of the team. While Harry was flying around, trying out his broom, he saw a hint of gold sparkle in the sunlight. He immediately flew at amazing speeds towards the opposition's goal, where he had saw the sparkle. Within moments, he was within arms reach from the snitch, and before he knew it, he had caught it. The team all clapped excitedly, hoping that Harry could do as well during the real game. After fifty minutes, the practice was winding to an end. Harry had caught about twenty snitches by then, and they didn't want to tire themselves out. The entire team flew back to the ground, and Jeffrey called them over to their locker room.  
  
The room was quite dark and murky. There were paintings of great quidditch players all over the walls, and in the middle of the room, there were seven seats set up facing a chalkboard. All the players took their seats, and then Jeffrey walked in front of the chalkboard. "The fans are starting to come in now, and we don't want to let them know what we are all about. We can't let them know that we have Harry until the start of the game. There's only a little over an hour left, and at which time we will go onto the field to play. Until then, I suggest going over in your head how you are going to play. A positive attitude makes a positive win." With those words, he stepped away from the chalkboard, and everything was silent. For the next hour, everyone just stayed to himself, or talked with another player quietly. Harry just thought about victory, and what it would be like to win the cup. After what seemed like five minutes, Jeffrey got back in front of them and said, "It's time."  
  
The team got up, and everyone picked up his broom. Adrenaline was pumping through Harry, and his heart was beating a mile a minute. He was the last in the line of seven players, and as they approached the door, Harry could begin to hear the announcer's voice. "Let's have a hand for our Bulgarian team!", he said. The thousands of people attending started to clap ferociously. "Now for the Americans! I'd like to introduce the keeper, Stephen Pate!!!". Once again, there was an eruption of clapping, Stephen mounted his broom, and flew out to the center of the field. "Now the three chasers for the American team. Jim Holmes, Ted Denslow, and John Barstow!!!". The cheering came again, the three players mounted their brooms, and flew out to the middle of the field. "Now for those burly beaters, Frank Abagnal, and Kurt Richards!". The two mounted their brooms and joined the other players of the team in the middle of the field. "Next, and lastly is the seeker. It appears we have a substitute for James Schank. The man to be taking his spot is. am I reading this correctly? Harry Potter!!!!!", he yelled louder than the rest. By this time, Harry was extremely nervous. He mounted his broom, pushed off from the ground, and zipped over to the center of the field where everyone else was.  
  
Harry saw the referee talking to the two captains, Krum and Stephen, which gave him a chance to look around at the crowd. It was even more packed than Harry thought before, because after looking around Harry thought that there must have been 400,000 people there. Harry's attention turned once again to the referee, who was now standing over a small box. He opened it slowly, and let the snitch go first. It flapped its wings, and before Harry knew it, it was out of his sight. He then let the quaffle out, and finally the bludgers. With a loud whistle, the start of the match began.  
  
Everyone pushed off the ground at the same time, and the game was underway. Harry flew over to the American goals, where he decided he would stay to look for the snitch. The announcer's voice was booming louder than Harry's thoughts. "Now America has control of the quaffle. Jim passes to Ted, and Ted to Stephen. He shoots, he scores! The score now 10-0 America!"  
  
The Bulgarians got control of the quaffle next however, and after three unsuccessful misses by Stephen, the score was quickly 30-10. Harry began frantically looking around for the snitch. Over by the Bulgarian hoops was Krum doing the exact same. Harry then saw Krum starting over towards something, so he zipped over to follow him. Once Harry was within a decent distance from Krum, Krum started to make a drastic incline. Harry's worst fear was coming true, Krum had seen the snitch and he was going to catch it. Harry frantically followed Krum, but was barely able to keep up. Once the two were well above the stands, Krum made a sharp turn downwards, and began to shoot straight for the ground. "He sees it!", Harry thought to himself as he made the same turn down. They were approaching the ground faster than Harry thought comfortable. Few feet before Krum hit the ground, he turned up, and narrowly missed hitting the grass. Harry figured out what Krum was doing just in time. He was trying to do the Wronskei Feint on him. Immediately once Harry had figured out what was going on, he pulled up as hard as he could. Harry's broom began it's turn up, and Harry thought he wasn't going to make it. He was going so fast that he wasn't turning up as sharp as he normally would have, and he narrowly missed the ground.  
  
"If I had been on my Firebolt right now, I may be dead.", Harry thought to himself. He was now flying around with a new dislike towards Krum. Krum had taken Harry as an amateur, and now he had to win. Harry flew back towards the American goals, and on his way noticed that the score was now 80-80. Before he managed to make it back to the goals, and bludger zoomed past his head, and Harry barely dodged it in time.  
  
Frank flew next to Harry and said, "Sorry about that. I'll get 'em good for you. You'd better find the snitch soon; I don't know how much longer Stephen can hold out. They are pelting the quaffle at him left and right." With that, Frank flew off. Harry finally made it back to the goals, and started his look for the snitch again. He saw Krum on the other side doing the same, and neither of the two could see any sign of it. After forty-five minutes, Harry and Krum still had no luck of finding the snitch. It looked as if it had disappeared. The score was now 180-160, the Americans were leading, but Harry didn't know for how long. One of their chasers, Jim, had been hit by a bludger straight to the face, and fell off his broom. Harry suspected that he would be out for the rest of the game.  
  
After twenty minutes of still no snitch play, the Bulgarians began to take it to the Americans. With only two chasers in play, they didn't stand a chance. The score was soon 240-180 in favor of the Bulgarians, and Harry knew that he had to act quickly or there would be no way that they could win. After some thinking, Harry had a plan. He started to fly full speed right towards the stands. Krum had obviously seen Harry go off, because he immediately picked up his pace to full speed, and was soon right behind Harry. Harry hadn't seen the snitch, but he thought that if Krum were out of the game it would even things up a bit. Moments before Harry hit the stands, he made a sharp decline, and hardly missed the concrete seats. Harry turned around to see if his plan worked, and to his excitement he saw Krum fly face first into the stands. His broom splintered like a twig, and Krum was thrown straight into the concrete seats. Not only had he hit them, but then he started to roll down the stands, and soon fell off into a pit of sand.  
  
With renewed spirits, Harry set off looking for the snitch. With Krum out of the game, it should be a piece of cake. The score was now 320-190 in Bulgaria's favor. If Harry didn't get the snitch immediately, they would lose. That was when he saw it, a tiny glint of gold amidst the Bulgarian goals. He started to zoom towards it as fast as he could, dodging bludgers left and right. When he was only feet away from it, he heard the announcer cry, "330-190 Bulgarians. If Harry manages to get the snitch now, then the Americans would win."  
  
Harry sped up so he was going as fast as he could. He was now merely feet away from snitch. He stretched out his hand to make the final grab, and felt his fingers wrap around the tiny snitch. His heart overflowed with joy, he was on the World champion quidditch team. That's when he heard the announcers voice, "Tie game folks, tie game. 340-340, Volkov makes that final score for the Bulgarians just in time." Harry turned around awestruck and outraged. He opened his mouth to yell to his teammates, but before he could get out any words, a bludger hit him in the face. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he fell off his broom.  
  
Harry awoke painfully in a white room. It was very bright, and Harry had trouble seeing as he opened his eyes. Once he managed to get them open, he scanned over the room. There were a dozen beds just like Harry's in the room, and to Harry's right he saw his teammate Jim Holmes asleep on the bed next to his. He looked over to the bed on his left, and to his extreme excitement, saw Hermione sitting on the bed to his left. "Hermione!", he called out. "I'm so sorry.", but Harry couldn't finish his thought.  
  
Hermione had placed her index finger over Harry's lips to quiet him. "I thought you were dead", she said to him. "I thought I had lost you forever." She began to cry softly, and Harry tried to talk. He was only silenced once again by Hermione. "Let me explain first", she said. "I was thinking about last night, with Viktor. I'm so sorry Harry, I never meant for that to happen. I just thought he was going to take me to my tent, but then one thing came to another and.", she stopped herself mid-sentence. "You saw what happened after that. But I realized when I nearly lost you Harry; it's you I was missing. I love you Harry, and I'll do anything to make it up to you."  
  
Hermione stopped talking, and just stared at Harry with a resentful look in her eyes, as if she was sorry for what she had done. "I love you too Hermione." Harry had forgiven her, he knew what he had done to Krum and her was stupid, and he didn't want anything else than to be with Hermione right now. The two embraced, and to Harry's surprise, Hermione kissed Harry gently on the lips. To Hermione's greater surprise, Harry kissed her back.  
  
Just then, the American quidditch team walked into the hospital room. "Ahem.", Jeffrey said loudly.  
  
Harry and Hermione quickly let go of each other and Harry said, "Hey guys, how are you?". Harry was nervously rubbing the back of his head.  
  
"Well, considering that we have a chance at the Quidditch cup, pretty good actually", Stephen replied.  
  
"I know, I'm sorry. I should have wait. we have a chance? I thought it was a tie.", Harry said ecstatically.  
  
"Well it was, and normally it would've ended like that.", said Stephen. "But because this is the Quidditch cup, we're going to go into a sort of sudden death situation."  
  
"No way! How does it work?", he asked, leaping out of bed.  
  
"We're not exactly sure. We were supposed to come down here and see if you are OK to play. Feel up to it Harry?"  
  
"Wouldn't miss it for the world Stephen. But wait. where's my broom?", Harry asked starting to get worried.  
  
"Don't worry Harry. We've got it, come with us. We'll go down to the field and get it for you." Harry looked at Hermione for approval, she nodded, and Harry started down the hall towards the stadium. "Krum was just revived too. That was some awesome Wronskei feint you pulled Harry. Like a pro."  
  
"Thanks.", Harry said trying not to sound full of himself. "Krum almost faked me out with his; I was surprised he fell for mine." They walked the rest of the way to the stadium in silence. Once they arrived at the stadium, John ran over to the referee's booth and grabbed Harry's broom.  
  
"They've inspected it for you", he said. "Good as new. It took a little hit when it fell to the ground, but nothing a few charms couldn't fix." John handed Harry the broom, and the six of them walked onto the field to meet the seven Bulgarian players. After shaking hands, the referee began to speak.  
  
"This will be a sudden death match. Since we have never had to make on up, we have decided on a fairly simple match. The only players that will contest for the win, are both seekers." Harry eyed Krum standing amongst his team members, looking quite beat up. "I'll release the snitch, and the first seeker to retrieve it, wins 150 points, and the Cup. Will all other players please leave the field now?". Frank, John, Stephen, Ted, and Kurt all left the field, along with the Bulgarians. "I want this clean, all right? Shake hands, and I'll release the snitch."  
  
Harry and Krum closed in and shook hands. When they were close together, Krum whispered to Harry, "You won't get me again with that Wronskei feint. Good luck Potter."  
  
"Yeah, you too.", Harry said. They both stepped back to their places, and the referee bent over the small box to release the snitch. He unlatched the harness that was holding it down, and it immediately flew overhead, and out of site.  
  
"Ready, set, go!". Harry and Krum both shot off the ground at insane speeds. They were looking all over the field for the golden snitch. After their first sweep had failed, they each retreated to their respective goals. Harry scanned the outlying area for any sign of gold, and then. a shimmer of light. It was in the middle of the field. Harry immediately set out as fast as he could towards the center. Krum had also seen the snitch, and he was also shooting towards it at breakneck speeds. Even though Harry had his Lightningbolt, he was still no match for Krum's superior flying. Krum was there seconds before Harry, and he outstretched his hand to retrieve the snitch. Harry gave a boost of speed, and knocked Krum's hand out of the way.  
  
The snitch shot out of both their grasps, and was soon out of sight once more. They both stayed in the center of the field this time, looking desperately for the golden ball that could win their country pride. Harry spotted it again; it was heading towards his goals. He shot out of the center, and as speeding closer and closer to the snitch. He was getting nearer and nearer to the snitch, until he was so close he could taste it. He put his hand out to grab it, and he felt his heart beat quicker. This was going to be the most joyous day in Harry's life, until he felt a sharp pain in the small of his back. His movement was stopped, and he was holding it in pain. The crowd erupted in cheers, and the announcer was yelling loudly. Harry opened his eyes to see what happened, and he saw Krum, holding the golden snitch in-between his fingers.  
  
Chapter Three: Back to School  
  
Harry couldn't believe his eyes. He had been so close to getting the snitch, and then Krum had done something to Harry. He didn't know whether it was a spell, or if Krum had used his hands, but he sure knew that it wasn't fair. The crowd continued to cheer for Krum, and the announcer roared, "Let's hear it for our Quidditch World Champions, the Bulgarians!". Harry could see a wizard in the top box mount his broom, and ride down to the field with the Quidditch Cup. The rest of the Bulgarian team had huddled together on the field, and they were all celebrating. The man gave the cup to Krum, and he hoisted it high over his head.  
  
After Harry touched down on the ground, he saw the rest of the American team over in a corner of the field. He ran over to them, and was warmly welcomed with cheers and praises. "You did your best Harry!". "Yeah, we wouldn't have even made it this far without you." After a bit of talking, Harry noticed Hermione standing off to the side of the field out of the corner of his eye. He bid his final farewells to the American team, and then made his way over to Hermione.  
  
"You were great", Hermione said after Harry had finally reached her. She was beaming a large smile over to Harry. She hugged Harry so tight that he thought he was going to pop.  
  
"Thanks", Harry muttered. "I just wanted that Cup so badly" he said, still grieving over the loss. Harry looked towards the ground, a bit ashamed.  
  
Hermione grasped Harry's chin between her thumb and index finger, and turned his face upwards towards her own. Harry saw that she was smiling intensely, and Hermione said, "Let's go celebrate."  
  
"Celebrate?", Harry asked in astonishment. "For what? I lost the game!". Harry was still quite appalled at the idea of celebration after he lost.  
  
"Don't you see Harry?", Hermione asked with a twinkle in her eye. "It doesn't matter to me if you win or lose. All that matters is that you are all right" Harry stared into her eyes, looking to see if she was telling the truth. To his surprise, it seemed as if she didn't care about the outcome of the game.  
  
"All right Hermione, lets go." Harry picked up his broom, took Hermione's hand, and started back towards their tents. They passed thousands of fans on their way back, many of which commented Harry on his performance. After making their way through seas of people, they finally found their tent. Once inside Harry's tent, he placed his broom back into his trunk.  
  
"Just give me a few minutes and I'll have this place looking really good.", Hermione said. She took out her wand, and starting hexing everything in site. Soon, the entire inside of the tent was completely different than from before: there were streaming hanging from the ceiling, food and drinks laying on the table, posters hanging from the walls, and music playing in the background.  
  
"Looks great", Harry said after Hermione was finally finished decorating. "I never did get to thank you", Harry started.  
  
"For what?", Hermione asked a bit surprised.  
  
"Mostly for being there with me in the hospital wing. I was really stupid to you and Krum before, and I let my emotions get in the way of our friendship. Thanks for forgiving me."  
  
"Wait one second", Hermione said smiling. She left the tent and a few minutes later returned with many of their friends from Hogwarts. Among them included: Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan, Susan Bones, Terry Boot, Lavender Brown, Dennis Creevey, and a few others from Hogwarts. The students all congratulated Harry on his outstanding play. Even Dennis Creevey, whose brother Colin, had died to save Harry's life.  
  
The students all partied until it was late into the night. They had butterbeers brought in from Hogsmeade, which Harry thought must have cost a fortune. They also had quite a few practical jokes played, thanks to Weasley's Whizard Wheezes. Before the night was over, people were turning into chickens, looking like one another, and laughing hysterically. Finally when it became too late to party, and they were starting to get complaints from other people in neighboring tents, they began to leave. One by one, they all left Harry and Hermione, until finally the two were alone. After some exhausting cleaning, the tent finally looked normal again (normal for a wizarding tent at least). Harry collapsed down onto the couch where Hermione was sitting, and said, "We're finally alone." Harry looked over to Hermione, as if for approval. He leaned in to kiss her, and was met by her soft, full lips.  
  
Hermione didn't return to her tent that night. It was the greatest night of Harry's life, and he didn't care that he had lost the Quidditch Cup anymore. His time spent with Hermione was worth more than 1,000 World Cups. The following morning came all too quickly for Harry. He wished that he could have spent an eternity with Hermione, but before he knew it, the sun was up.  
  
It spread across Harry's face, reminding him that he wasn't in a dream. He rolled over on his bed, and saw that Hermione was already up. She was about to leave, when she noticed that Harry was awake. She ran over to Harry, gave him a kiss, and went back to her tent to get properly dressed. 


End file.
